Pilot Locked Out Of Cockpit On Air Canada Plane

eksath · Wed Aug 30, 2006 6:53 pm

http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/...a9dd60-18a9-4155-a6bb-8a8e8976bc04

Quote:"Pilot locked out of cockpit after bathroom break

Mike Edgell
Global National

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

WINNIPEG - An Air Canada pilot who left the flight deck to visit the washroom found himself locked out of the cockpit when he tried to return -- forcing the crew to remove the door from its hinges.

It happened aboard an Air Canada Jazz flight on Saturday, and the company confirmed to Global National yesterday it is conducting an internal investigation into the incident that took place on the Bombardier CRJ-100 carrying as many as 50 passengers from Ottawa to Winnipeg."

jamesbuk · Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:12 pm

so like was the other pilot too lazy to open the door or something?

Rgds --James--

itsjustme · Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:16 pm

Better than being locked in the bathroom, I guess.

macc · Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:18 pm

now, thats interesting...
where was the other pilot?
plane flying on autopilot with no one in cockpit?
how did they force the door from the hinges? thought thats what shouldnt be possible?

must have been a comfortable flight for the 50 pax. seeing the pilot struggle to get back to his place...

RichardPrice · Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:36 pm

Quoting Jamesbuk (Reply 1):
so like was the other pilot too lazy to open the door or something?

Quoting Macc (Reply 3):
where was the other pilot?
plane flying on autopilot with no one in cockpit?

Dont the rules state that at least one pilot should always be sat at the controls during a flight, with no exceptions?

Thats probably why they had to take the doors off the hinges, the PF wasnt allowed to leave the controls.

Fairly extreme case, but still, rules are rules.

jamesjoyce · Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:46 pm

Quoting Eksath (Thread starter):
WINNIPEG - An Air Canada pilot who left the flight deck to visit the washroom found himself locked out of the cockpit when he tried to return -- forcing the crew to remove the door from its hinges.

Henceforth all AC-aircraft will now be equipped with a bucket in the cockpit.

Spruit · Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:48 pm

Sounds like more media sensationalism to me!

But hey it's not like we're not all used to that is it!

Spru!

FlyingColours · Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:57 pm

The door probably jammed shut. Had a good few sticky doors already.

I don't think the hinges can be removed inflight with any ease. Its the media so take it with a 777F full of salt.

Quoting Jamesjoyce (Reply 5):
Henceforth all AC-aircraft will now be equipped with a bucket in the cockpit.

Hahaha

I've said for ages now that the FD should have its own Lavatory, heck if you put an oven and a chiller in there too there would never be a reason to go in during normal ops Smile

Phil
FlyingColours

itsjustme · Wed Aug 30, 2006 8:01 pm

Quoting Macc (Reply 3):
must have been a comfortable flight for the 50 pax. seeing the pilot struggle to get back to his place...

Sounds like scene right out of "Airplane!"

mdaigle · Wed Aug 30, 2006 9:16 pm

There was a FA in the cockpit with the co-pilot, so he/she may have popped the hinges from inside the cockpit. I don't know the design of the door, but the hinges may be accessible from the cockpit side.

Michel

yow · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:29 pm

Quoting Mdaigle (Reply 9):
There was a FA in the cockpit with the co-pilot, so he/she may have popped the hinges from inside the cockpit. I don't know the design of the door, but the hinges may be accessible from the cockpit side.

Michel

Yup, when one of the pilots is using the lav, an F/A must be in the cockpit (except in 3-person crewed cockpits which are almost non-existent nowadays).

AirRyan · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:37 pm

Quoting Jamesjoyce (Reply 5):
Henceforth all AC-aircraft will now be equipped with a bucket in the cockpit.

Wow, a pisser in an RJ is damn near one up on the LittleJohn as it is!

roseflyer · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:38 pm

Quoting FlyingColours (Reply 7):
The door probably jammed shut. Had a good few sticky doors already.

The door probably failed somehow and would not open. So the pilot probably was essentially locked out. Mechanisms can fail. I'm a guessing that they needed a bit of engenuity to get back in the cockpit.

SInGAPORE_AIR · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:42 pm

This for me was the interesting quote:

Eventually, the crew forced the door open by taking the door off its hinges completely

A terrorist with a lot of time on his hands and was (impossibly) invisible, could enter the cockpit quite readily with a screwdriver and some elbow grease?

gh123 · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:42 pm

Maybe one of pilots was a woman!?!?!

What a farce!

yow · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:46 pm

Quoting Singapore_Air (Reply 13):
A terrorist with a lot of time on his hands and was (impossibly) invisible, could enter the cockpit quite readily with a screwdriver and some elbow grease?

Having both pilots at the flight deck for landing is a lot less risky than having a secure cockpit door.

The cockpit doors aren't designed to be break-open proof, but rather open-proof for 1/2 hr to 1 hr, which is almost always long enough for a crew to divert to avert a highjacking attempt.

SInGAPORE_AIR · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:48 pm

Quoting YOW (Reply 15):
but rather open-proof for 1/2 hr to 1 hr

Ahh. OK.

Hoorah for the cabin crew.

VIflyer · Wed Aug 30, 2006 11:58 pm

Quoting Singapore_Air (Reply 13):
This for me was the interesting quote:

Eventually, the crew forced the door open by taking the door off its hinges completely

A terrorist with a lot of time on his hands and was (impossibly) invisible, could enter the cockpit quite readily with a screwdriver and some elbow grease?

Also the door can only be taken off the hinges easily from the inside the cockpit (without power tools and about, as said earlier, a couple of hours of free time). It's a escape feature if the escape hatch is inoperative during a accident.

Vi

iairallie · Thu Aug 31, 2006 12:03 am

You allways have to have 2 people in the cockpit so the fa was up there. They probably accessed the hinges from the inside of the cockpit. They are designed to be difficult to break into not out of.

airfoilsguy · Thu Aug 31, 2006 12:27 am

"There's sloppiness, there's inconsistency, and there are vulnerabilities that terrorists are going to notice, and they're going to see it and say this is easy pickings."

What a bunch of horse sh:t. The media is trying to say that Air Canada is sloppy and therefor giving terrorists ideas. The only one I see giving terrorists ideas is who ever wrote this article. It was a nonevent. It is not news worthy. Yes the people on airliners.net find it interesting but to the public at large no one cares. The Media needs to stop this sensationalistic bullsh;t!!

aircanl1011 · Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:02 am

The pilot "can be taken hostage by someone in the plane with hostile intent," said Peter St. John, a Winnipeg-based security analyst.

Couldn't someone with "hostile intent" take the pilot hostage when he is on his way to the lav under normal conditions.

This is a guy who lives with doubt and suspicion all his life and can find a problem waiting to happen with any situation. These guys need to sit down and shut up. They are the terrorists best weapon because they spread fear where there is no need for it.

Peter St. John you are as bad a any terrorist!!!!

727forever · Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:15 am

The new security cockpit door on the CRJ does have issues with getting stuck from time to time. Usually just give it a good bump and it will become dislodged. If not, there are pins on the inside that will allow it to be removed from the hinges. It is also quite easy to put the door back on the hinges. All CRJ pilots have been trained on this. The pilot still in the cockpit just had to show the FA how to do it to get the door open.

This whole thing has been blown way out of proportion. You'd think the media has more important stuff to report but this is pick on the airlines week.

727forever

aeroman444 · Thu Aug 31, 2006 3:49 am

All you need is half a tennis ball to get in there anyway. Smile

XFSUgimpLB41X · Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:28 am

Boy, it's a good thing the FO didn't have to land the airplane.... idiot media.

As has been stated before, the hinge release mechanisms are inside the cockpit. I believe instead this proves how sturdy the cockpit door is in the event of an attempted cockpit intrusion. This gives the crew plenty of time to go to full lock down... and in the event they finally do get into the cockpit they will get a nice welcome of a crash axe, gun, or both. Smile

Anyone who attempts to break into a cockpit that is not welcome has forfeited their life.

aeroplan73 · Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:55 am

Quoting AIRCANL1011 (Reply 20):
Couldn't someone with "hostile intent" take the pilot hostage when he is on his way to the lav under normal conditions.

If I was on a flight to Winnipeg, I'd be hostile too. duck

Gr8Circle · Thu Aug 31, 2006 5:33 am

Quoting Jamesbuk (Reply 1):
so like was the other pilot too lazy to open the door or something?

How did you come to such a conclusion? Confused

Skyslave · Thu Aug 31, 2006 5:55 am

Quoting RichardPrice (Reply 4):

The rules state that if a pilot of a 2 crew aircraft has to leave the controls for any reason, the other pilot has to wear his quick donning oxygen mask until the other pilot returns.

[Edited 2006-08-30 23:03:45]

Eventually, the crew forced the door open by taking the door off its hinges completely

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